This invention relates to a new and distinct selection of Cupressus sempervirens Linneus, native to southern Europe and western Asia which is a member of the Cypress family. Cupressus sempervirens cv. xe2x80x98Monshelxe2x80x99 was a sport from a Cupressus sempervirens (non-patented) that I discovered in my Santa Barbara Nursery at 5297 Shoreline Drive, Santa Barbara, Calif. around October 1990. This discovery was not the result of a breeding program.
Cupressus sempervirens xe2x80x98Monshelxe2x80x99 has been asexually reproduced by vegetative cutting since October 1991 at Monrovia Nursery Company, 18331 East Foothill Boulevard, Azusa, Calif. Had this sport not been discovered and propagated, it may have been lost to mankind. It is unlikely the particular select and favorable attributes of this plant could be conveyed to progeny through sexual reproduction in the next generation, particularly as neither flower or fruit have been observed to date. However, through extensive propagation through vegetative cuttings it has been established that the novel exceptional characteristics of this plant are stable and reliably passed on to clonal specimens through asexual reproduction.
Cupressus sempervirens cv. xe2x80x98Monshelxe2x80x99 has fine textured foliage along with an unusually small stature, producing a diminutive effect of a plant, which normally has a stature of up to 25 meters tall. Typically, Cupressus sempervirens branchlets are not in a single plane resulting in a plant with depth and openness in growth habit. My selection has this typical characteristic of branchlets not in a single plane; however, the smaller leaf size does not make the angled branches as prominent as in the typical Cupressus sempervirens and my selection exhibits a tighter and more dense foliage habit.
My selection also is smaller in overall size. An eight-year-old specimen, the oldest known, has achieved a height of 2.1 meters and a width of 34 cm. Cupressus sempervirens and Cupressus sempervirens xe2x80x98Glaucaxe2x80x99 at eight years of age are both approximately 75 percent larger with a height of 3.5 meters and a width of 50 centimeters.
The most widely available cultivar in the nursery industry is Cupressus sempervirens xe2x80x98Glaucaxe2x80x99 (not patented). The foliage color on this cultivar is more grey blue, Green Group138B with a mix of Greyed-Green Group194B. Another cultivar Cupressus sempervirens xe2x80x98Totemxe2x80x99 (not patented) is also more grey, Green Group138B with tones of Greyed Green Group 191B. My selection has a much more green color (see botanical description) than either of these two selections.
My selection, xe2x80x98Monshelxe2x80x99, has tolerated cold temperatures from a low of 0xc2x0 F., which is equivalent to a USDA hardiness zone 8, without exhibiting any damage.